October 5, 2023
As part of expanding efforts to identify and understand workforce and workplace challenges that may be experienced by its members, the Pennsylvania Pharmacists Association (PPA) Board of Directors adopted the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) policy statement on workplace conditions which:
- calls for employers to provide fair, realistic, and equitable workplace conditions for pharmacy personnel that promote a safe, healthy, and sustainable working environment;
- urges all entities that impact pharmacy personnel workplace conditions to adopt the Pharmacists Fundamental Responsibilities and Rights ;
- urges employers to develop and empower pharmacy personnel to use flexible practice management models based on available staffing, expertise, and resources that balance workloads to minimize distractions;
- advocates for employers to provide workplace onboarding and training for pharmacy personnel to optimize employee performance and satisfaction;
- encourages pharmacy personnel, starting with leaders, to model and facilitate individualized healthy working behaviors that improve well-being and to encourage and empower colleagues to do the same;
- ·opposes the sole use of productivity and fiscal measures for employee performance evaluations; and
- calls for employers and employees to collaborate in the development and use of behavioral performance competencies in performance evaluations.
Pharmacists are trusted healthcare professionals who play a vital role in ensuring optimal medication use, providing patient counseling and referrals to critical community resources, and administering vaccines even throughout a pandemic. Effective delivery of these services demands working conditions that prioritize the safety of pharmacy professionals and their patients with appropriate staffing models that permit pharmacists and pharmacy staff the time and resources necessary to focus on patients.
The most recent Pharmacy Workplace and Well-being Report highlights that inadequate staffing, unreasonable metrics, and harassment continue to plague pharmacists and pharmacy staff in practice settings where companies set work demands that exceed the time available to address them safely and accurately.
A significant contributing factor to understaffing and unrealistic performance metrics is a payment system misalignment that rewards volume over value. The predominant reimbursement model for pharmacists and pharmacies primarily centers on medication dispensing rather than addressing patients’ clinical needs to improve health outcomes. This payment system for pharmacy services is fundamentally flawed, placing the burden for shareholder wealth on the shoulders of pharmacy staff, at a time when the roles of pharmacists are expanding well beyond the mere dispensing of medications.
The PPA, along with our colleagues in the National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations, urges all stakeholders – employers, educators, boards of pharmacy, third-party payers, federal and state legislators and legislatures, pharmacy professionals, associations, and all those who can make a difference – to take action and engage in critical dialogue to find solutions that will ensure continued public access to pharmacy services.
Through its work with a statewide alliance of pharmacy organizations, PPA has and continues to support legislation intended to bring parity to the payment system for community pharmacy. Our most recent efforts are focused on enforcement of these laws, and we remain optimistic that our Community Pharmacy Caucus members, House and Senate Leaders, and the Pennsylvania Administration will continue to support our efforts to sustain pharmacies as a critical access point for Pennsylvania constituents.
As the PPA continues to build on our recently adopted Workplace Conditions Policy we encourage our members to stay diligent, share your concerns, ideas and resources, and stay tuned for additional information and announcements about next steps.
Additional information and resources:
Pharmacy Workplace and Well-being Reporting portal – Recent published reports are available here. The PWWR is a safe, confidential, and anonymous avenue for pharmacy personnel to report positive and negative workplace experiences developed by the National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations (NASPA) and the APhA. We encourage all pharmacists and pharmacy staff to complete this confidential and anonymous survey to be used to drive lasting change in our industry.
Well-being Index – A tool designed to be used on a regular basis by pharmacy professionals – this collective knowledge assesses the pulse of a workforce stretched to their limits and encourages action from stakeholders based on those results. We encourage all pharmacy staff to engage for their own sake.
PA Professional Health Monitoring Program – conducted through the Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs (BPOA), the PHMP provides a method by which professionals suffering from a mental or physical disorder, such as a substance use disorder, may be directed to appropriate treatment and receive monitoring to ensure that they can safely practice their licensed profession.
PA Physicians Health Program – an independent, non-profit peer assistance organization within the Foundation of the Pennsylvania Medical Society which provides pharmacists, pharmacy students, and other eligible healthcare professionals a connection to services. In addition to accepting self-referrals and working with individuals, the PAPHP works closely with Pennsylvania pharmacy training programs, all major Pennsylvania healthcare systems, and the PA Professional Health Monitoring Program of the Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs (BPOA) to offer private and confidential paths to seeking assistance for behavioral, psychiatric, and substance use disorders.
S.A.R.P.H . – an independent, non-profit organization, dedicated to helping pharmacists and pharmacy interns manage substance use and mental health disorders.
PPA Career Center – Opportunities for professional pharmacy positions can be found here.
Mental Health in PA – resources from the Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS)
for mental health and substance use disorder.
Mark Your Calendar!
PPA Regional Meetings – specifically for students and new practitioners to network, identify new and rewarding career opportunities.
Eastern Regional Meeting – October 21, 2023 at the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy/St. Joseph’s University.
Western Regional Meeting – November 11, 2023 at the University of Pittsburgh
PPA Annual Conference , February 2-4, 2024, at the Harrisburg Hilton
About The Pennsylvania Pharmacists Association
Founded in 1878, the Pennsylvania Pharmacists Association is a professional membership organization of more than 2,300 pharmacists and pharmacy students across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, representing nearly all facets of pharmacy practice. As the leading voice of pharmacy in Pennsylvania, PPA promotes the profession through advocacy, education, and communication to enhance patient care and public health. For more information about PPA, visit papharmacists.com/.
